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It is Poland that should actually propose a big energy treaty, first with Germany and then as part of the entire EU, or with the entire community from the get go. It should make it clear that no EU country can make decisions that will undermine energy security as seriously as Nord Stream 2 did, says Paweł Kowal from the Civic Coalition, an expert on eastern policy, in an interview with BiznesAlert.pl.
BiznesAlert.pl: Should Poland help Germany with gas supplies?
Paweł Kowal: It is Poland that should actually propose a big energy treaty, first with Germany and then as part of the entire EU, or with the entire community from the get go. It should make it clear that no EU state can on its own make decisions that will undermine the energy security of others as Nord Stream 1 did. Poland should use the current favorable trend and work towards its strategic interest, which is to strengthen the solidarity in the EU and build new legal guarantees for it. We should tell our wetern partners: you have already learned your lesson when it comes to Nord Stream, you have jeopardized European security, as you can see, now we are going back to Article 176A of the Treaty of Lisbon, which talks about energy solidarity, and we are demanding clarification of those provisions that concern security of energy supply, the functioning of the market, energy efficiency, etc. Wisdom does not consist in constantly reproaching the Germans for their mistakes. Wisdom is the ability to draw conclusions and propose something for the future. The matter is simple, it is necessary to strive for safeguards that will make another Russian blackmail impossible.
Nevertheless, now it is Poland that has gas reserves, and others do not.
Exactly – and this is an opportunity for us to take the initiative. Blocking EU energy solidarity legislation is not only childish, it is also short-sighted. The government works like this: because they are angry at the European Commission for not launching the National Recovery Plan, by the way, also because of the inconsistency of the Polish government, Anna Moskwa is trying to “take a jab” at our partners in another field. And we stay with the Hungarians on the sidelines. Poland, a state that could garner more appreciation due to the war in Ukraine and thanks to the attitude of the Polish society, is again getting busy with Orban – probably the most pro-Russian prime minister on the continent. I am lost for words to condemn how the party line wins over the state interests in the policies pursued by Anna Moskwa.
However, the treaty provisions on energy solidarity are weak.
Exactly – so it is in our interest to weaken them further, or to propose more serious commitments? The treaty provisions on energy security were strongly supported personally also by President Lech Kaczyński, but back then it was impossible to win more, but now it is doable and the government is changing the front, despite the fact that Poland is not at all safe in terms of supplies of fossil fuels for the winter, and in a year maybe it will be us that will need supplies from Germany. Once again, the big Germany will be able to cope without our promises, but it may become increasingly difficult for us to demand energy solidarity from EU countries. Hungary will betray us as usual, and we will be left out in the cold.
Do we therefore have to agree to compulsory consumption reductions?
Firstly, we will reduce consumption anyway. Secondly, there is still a long way before we are “coerced” and it doesn’t look like this will happen, and third let’s be real: energy solidarity makes sense if the states are forced to support one another, and the EC is able to enforce that obligation. Anyone who demands “flexibility” is in fact playing for the team of the strongest countries of the union, which silently do not want the EC to be able to “coerce” anybody. After all, this works in two ways – the point is that there should be no need to beg for support if necessary, but that there should also be a support mechanism for medium and small countries, because the big ones will cope. Solidarity on paper and without obligations is fiction. I repeat: it is in our interest to be on the same page with the EU countries and not on the side, at the mercy of Russia and Orban’s pats on the back.
Does your approach not lead to EU federalization?
My proposal is to think from the point of view of Polish citizens who are afraid of the cold and aggressive policy of Russia. This is my starting point, and I am looking for a solution to how we can protect the people who are afraid of the winter – this year and later on. Let’s look at it practically and not ideologically. And by the way, the federalization of the EU was most accelerated by Prime Minister Morawiecki, because he agreed to a joint European debt as part of the NRP. Not to mention the fact that even though he agreed to the obligations, he failed to solve the NRP issue, which means Poles still don’t have the money, but almost all other states do. By the way, the NRP includes funds for improving energy security as well.
So what should be done now?
Everything opposite to what minister Moskwa is saying. It is in the Polish interest to take the initiative and demand more security guarantees from our partners for our country and not to run away from the talks. In my opinion, it is Poland that actually should propose a big energy treaty, first with Germany and then as part of the entire EU, or with the entire community from the get go. It should make it clear that no EU state can on its own can make decisions that will undermine the energy security of others as Nord Stream 2 did. Perhaps the energy treaty should be based on the experience of the European energy community, or perhaps a different approach should be taken, but I have no doubt that now is the time.
Interview by Wojciech Jakóbik
